The Academy of Film of the School of Communication and the Hong Kong Asian Film Festival co-organised a master class with renowned Australian-Hong Kong cinematographer, Mr Christopher Doyle, and Japanese actor, Mr Joe Odagiri, to share their journey of independent filmmaking.

Mr Joe Odagiri and Mr Christopher Doyle are important figures of indie films in Japan and Hong Kong respectively and they recently collaborated on the independent film The White Girl.

Mr Doyle is best known for his long-term collaboration with director Wong Ka-wai in works such as Happy Together, In the Mood for Love, 2046, among others. Apart from being a cinematographer, he also directed several independent films, namely Hong Kong Trilogy: Preschooled Preoccupied Preposterous and The White Girl.

My Doyle shared his directorial experience. He said, “Preparation is important. Every single person in the production should be well-prepared. During film shooting, what matters most is the trust and interaction between the director and actor, which could bring the film to life.” Both Mr Doyle and Mr Odagiri enjoyed the filming process.

Mr Odagiri rose to prominence as an actor with the highly-acclaimed films Blood and Bones and Tokyo Tower: Mom and Me, and Sometimes Dad. In recent years, he has been actively taking part in independent film productions and starring in television dramas at times.

Mr Odagiri talked about his preferred film roles, “The script comes before everything else and there must be some elements which appeal to me. Other than that, I prefer to take part in non-mainstream films, which give me greater freedom to reflect my vision of the characters.” To students who would like to pursue an acting career, Mr Odagiri said, “Your motivation to be an actor should be pure. Film is a collaborative art form and your acting is part of that creation. You should be committed to constantly improving your craft and setting challenges for yourself. That is also what I’ve been doing.”

The master class attracted a full house of 400 students and guests.